Infrastructure is expensive, important and difficult to get right. For both the members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as well as other countries, infrastructure exposes shortcomings in country systems that may undermine our ability to identify, develop and procure good projects that are sustainable, affordable and legitimate. But there is no alternative—businesses rely on modern infrastructure to remain competitive, and society depends on good infrastructure to ensure equal opportunity and access to services for citizens.

In response to this challenge, investors, regulators, members of the public and private sectors, and decision makers from across levels of government, expertise, and regions, gathered at the 2ndOECD Forum on the Governance of Infrastructure in Paris in March to discuss the impact of infrastructure governance on productivity, jobs and wellbeing.

Cross-sector collaboration is more important than ever – and needs to be done in a better way. Governments now face a $2.5 trillion funding gap to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, and will need $90 trillion in public private investment to slow the dangerous effects of climate change, according to a UN report.

The potential for partnerships to solve problems faced by the public sector dominates the news: in the United States, the new government has announced plans to prop up a $1 trillion infrastructure plan with public private partnership (PPP) financing. In the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire tragedy, questions have arisen over the UK’s current method of outsourcing.

With ever-shrinking government budgets, the need for collaboration across all sectors – not just infrastructure, but environment, education, migration and many others – is more pressing than ever. Now is the time for government to get it right.

The Global Infrastructure Outlook is a landmark country-based online tool and report developed by the Global Infrastructure Hub with Oxford Economics, which forecasts infrastructure investment needs across 50 countries and seven sectors to 2040.

Although there are already forecasts for infrastructure investment in the market, the public and private sectors indicated their need for fresh, country-level data. Outlook was created to meet that knowledge gap.

For the first time we have data about what each country needs to spend in each sector, and importantly – the gap between what needs to be spent and current spending trends.

The APMG PPP Certification Program enables participants to take their skills to the next level, and the Certified PPP Professional (CP3P) credential is a means to officially convey that expertise and ability.

Whether you’re thinking about signing up, or already enrolled, in this series we share some insight from practitioners who have already passed the test. This week, we caught up with Kaara Wainaina, an external affairs officer in Kenya’s PPP Unit. Read his answers below.

This year’s Infrastructure Week held in May came as public support for infrastructure investment is at an all-time high. According to a recent Gallup poll, three out of four Americans support increasing investment in the U.S. transportation and energy systems. And with the majority of infrastructure projects in the U.S. already funded by the private sector, all the pieces are in place for large-scale investments.

“Proceeding from the Islamic Development Bank’s interest, as well as my personal concerns about what benefits the Member Countries, where the subject of partnerships between the public and private sectors (PPPs) has become a major hub in fostering development in several sectors in many countries, I have initiated a forum to address the most significant issues and topics related to the importance of partnerships between the public and private sectors, in addition to the optimal means to activate them and benefit from their acclaimed development role." – Dr. Bandar Mohammed Al-Hajjar, President, Islamic Development Bank

The first Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Forum took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in March 2017, which I attended as a guest moderator and panelist. The IsDB organized the Forum to support its communication with its member countries by initiating a debate that would introduce forum participants to opportunities and challenges that PPPs present in various countries and various sectors.

Kenya recently launched its high-capacity, high-speed standard gauge railway (SGR) for passenger and freight transportation, which currently runs from the coastal city of Mombasa to the capital city, Nairobi. The SGR replaces the meter gauge railway passenger line that was constructed during the British colonial period that was commonly referred to as the lunatic express.

The Kenyan SGR is part of a proposed wider regional network for the development of railway connecting Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan. Each of these countries is expected to develop the part of the railway line falling within its borders. Kenya is ahead of the pack, being the first country in the region to operationalize the SGR.

Editor's Note: Welcome to the “10 Candid Career Questions” series, introducing you to the infrastructure and PPP professionals who do the deals, analyze the data, and strategize on the next big thing. Each of them followed a different path into infra and/or PPP practice, and this series offers an inside look at their backgrounds, motivations, and choices. Each blogger receives the same 10 questions that tell their career story candidly and without jargon. We hope you will be surprised and inspired.

We’ve just released the 2016 update for the World Bank’s Private Participation in Infrastructure (PPI) Database and it makes for some gloomy reading. Investment commitments (investments) in infrastructure with private participation in Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs) fell by a whopping 37% compared to 2015.

The world is crying out for new infrastructure. In emerging market countries, growing populations and rapid urbanization mean that cities are struggling to keep pace with the needs of citizens. Meanwhile, infrastructure is outdated in many developed countries.

Yet there is a $1 trillion annual shortfall in infrastructure investment, mostly in emerging markets. At the same time, there are billions of dollars in debt capital seeking secure and healthy returns.